Try A Power User’s Tool To Launch Apps On Your Mac

One of the easiest ways to tell the difference between an average Mac user and a power Mac user is, well, how they use their Macs. They’re different.

Average Mac folk tend to point and click, whether mouse or trackpad. Power Mac users take a different approach and their workflow is more keyboard oriented. A hand or fingers that leave the keyboard actually slow down the workflow, hence power Mac user apps tend to be keyboard centric. Here’s an example.

Launch Me, Baby!

Mac users who want to move from average to power simply need to change the workflow, and get away from point and click and move as much as possible to keyboard usage. Here’s a good utility to get you started.

It’s called Launchey. It’s a Mac app launcher that resides in the Mac’s Menubar. That means you can still use it to point and click to open an app, but it comes with a customizable menu and customizable hotkeys which make using Launchey more efficient.

Setup which apps you want Launchey, to, well, launch; and assign a keyboard shortcut to each one.

Launchey will list your selected apps within the Menubar, but allow you to use the keyboard shortcuts, too. Five apps can be displayed from the Menubar.

You can even customize app directories, setup Launchey to start when your Mac starts up, and not worry about it using too much memory, as it’s rather lightweight and just resides in the background ready to be used.

Launchey is inexpensive enough to be an entry level power user’s tool; a launcher that moves you from point and click to keyboard only. If you’re ready to leave behind the point and click world and move into a keyboard only workflow, then you’ll save money by using Quicksilver. It’s free and there’s a learning curve, but mastering Quicksilver’s method for app launching and file navigation turns you into a real Mac power user.

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About Natalia Nowak

My husband, Nathan, and I have used Macs for nearly 25 years. We're teachers at a private school in Chicago, IL. I'm also the school's resident Mac system administrator, PC troubleshooter, and a diehard Mac diva and iPhone hacker. Read more of my articles here.

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